Preparing for Surgery
Surgery
is a standard part of breast cancer treatment. Almost everyone diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer has some surgery. Sometimes, people diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer have surgery, too.
Surgery is effective, but the recovery that comes with it can be tough. Sensitive skin, fluid buildup in the surgery site, and sore, tight or painful muscles can all be part of recovery.
Watch the video to get tips from women who had surgery about how to prepare yourself and your home for recovery.
What to Expect
Recovery Resources
Learn more about the different types of surgery and making decisions about your surgery.
- Learn
- The Basics
- Types of Breast Cancer
- DCIS and LCIS
- Hormone Receptor-Positive
- HER2-Positive
- Triple-Negative
- Metastatic
- How Breast Cancer Metastasizes
- What Makes Metastatic Breast Cancer Different
- Bone Metastases
- Brain Metastases
- Liver Metastases
- Lung Metastases
- Diagnosis and Testing
- Treatments and Research
- Side Effects
- Bone Health and MBC
- Bone Pain and MBC
- Chemobrain
- Depression and Anxiety and MBC
- Hair Loss and MBC
- Hand-Foot Syndrome and MBC
- Heart Health and MBC
- Insomnia and Fatigue and MBC
- Menopausal Symptoms and MBC
- Mouth Sores and MBC
- Nail and Skin Changes and MBC
- Nausea and Vomiting and MBC
- Neuropathy and MBC
- Neutropenia and MBC
- Pain and MBC
- Sexual Side Effects
- Living With Metastatic Breast Cancer
- Inflammatory
- Lobular
- Diagnosis and Testing
- Treatments and Research
- Getting a Second Opinion
- Clinical Trials
- Surgery
- Chemotherapy
- Radiation Therapy
- Immunotherapy
- Targeted Therapy
- Hormonal Therapy
- Biosimilars
- Breast Reconstruction
- Complementary Therapy
- Yoga and Breast Cancer
- Side Effects
- Anemia
- Why Fear of Recurrence Happens
- Common Fear of Recurrence Triggers
- Managing Your Fear of Recurrence
- Getting Support for Fears of Recurrence
- Bone Loss
- Bone Pain
- Chemobrain
- Depression and Anxiety
- Diarrhea
- Fear of Recurrence
- Hair Loss
- Hand-Foot Syndrome
- Heart Health
- High Cholesterol
- Insomnia and Fatigue
- Lymphedema
- Menopausal Symptoms
- Mouth Sores
- Nail and Skin Changes
- Nausea and Vomiting
- Neuropathy
- Neutropenia
- Pain
- Secondary Cancers
- Sexual Side Effects
- Weight Gain
- Weight Loss
- Living With Breast Cancer
- Body Image
- Bone Health Basics
- Treatments and Your Bone Health
- Bone Health Tests
- Improving Bone Health
- Medicines To Protect Bones
- Diet, Nutrition and Exercise
- Making Meals Healthy
- Tips for Healthy Eating
- Emotional Health
- Fear of Recurrence
- Fertility and Breast Cancer
- Genetics and Family Risk
- Job and Financial Concerns
- Breast Cancer and the Workplace
- Telling Employers and Coworkers About Your Diagnosis
- Work Accommodations and Disability Benefits
- Offsetting the “Hidden Costs” of Breast Cancer
- Getting Organized for Health Insurance
- Private, State and Federal Insurance
- Navigating Your Heatlh Insurance
- Dealing With a Claim Denial
- Other Ways to Get Insurance
- Financial Planning
- What is the ACA?
- Sex and Intimacy
- Birth Control and Breast Cancer
- Maintaining Sexual Life
- If You Feel Pain During Sex
- Sexual Side Effects
- Body Image and Sexuality
- Improving Sexual Health With Medical Approaches
- Improving Sexual Health With Self Care
- Talking With Your Partner About Sex and Intimacy
- Talking With Your Healthcare Team About Sex and Intimacy
- Signs of Recurrence
- Learning from Others
- Additional Resources
- Get Support
- How You Can Help
- News & Opinion
